Workplace discrimination comes in many forms and Colorado employees who believe they have been victimized need to be aware of when they could have cause for a legal claim.
A recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court clarified some issues involving discrimination and job-related transfers. The new ruling will allow people to challenge the employer’s decision and assert their rights were violated under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. This provides another layer of protection for workers once they are aware of it and gives them the opening to file a claim if they have been wronged.
How does the SCOTUS decision affect complaints about transfers?
In the past, the only way in which a worker could lodge an employment law complaint about a transfer was if it was perceived to have done them “significant injury.” That has been changed to “some harm.” This distinction is important as it lowers the threshold for which a worker who believes the transfer was based on discrimination can file a legal claim.
The decision stemmed from the case of a police officer in Missouri who said she was transferred because she was a woman and her new commander wanted to install a male in her job. The commander asserted that the work was too dangerous for her as she was a plainclothes officer in intelligence. She said the new job was vastly different to what she did previously as she was supervising neighborhood patrols. The hours and schedule were also different.
Since her role changed, so did the benefits such as FBI status and a work vehicle for her use. Her schedule was also upended. Whereas she worked a conventional Monday to Friday when she was in intelligence, the new job had a rotating schedule. The case had been decided as not having caused her significant harm in lower courts. The Supreme Court viewed it from a different perspective, thereby lowering the standard to determine whether a person was harmed.
If workers are transferred for no reason other than perceptions about their ability based on a factor like gender and that worker is harmed because of it, then this could be cause to file a legal claim based on Title VII.
Workers who believe they were discriminated against should seek information
Discrimination comes in many forms. While Title VII is meant to provide protection, there are times when workers are unhappy with a work action but do not realize that it reached the level of illegal activity on the part of their employer. A transfer can be a matter of inconvenience, put a person in a worse situation, cost them income and cause other problems. If it was done for discriminatory reasons, there could be the basis to file a legal claim. People who think they were discriminated against in any way on the job should know their rights and take the necessary steps to make sure they are treated fairly and the employer is held accountable.